Get a SNELL approved helmet. I never had a full face helmet but I would get one if I were to ride again. When I had my accident last summer, I had a SNELL and DOT approved 1/2. I got a little road rash on my face...nothing major because i landed on my back. But let me say again that I got a minor head injury (im damn lucky) even with a helmet on!!!! So it is beyond important to get a great helmet that fits properly and one last bit of advice:

once its on cinch it up!! I've heard a few accidents stories where the helmet flew off because it wasn't cinched up properly. In once case the person died.

While you are getting a helmet, consider adding a nice crash jacket to your scooter wardrobe, too. It can't hurt, and it might even make you look cool.*

*and before anyone says anything... Nope... There is no hope for me. I gave up on aspirations to coolness a long, long time ago and nowadays strive just to look slightly less than completely dorky. It's questionable if I have managed even that. ;)

Bob's Cycle Supply in Little Canada, at Highway 36 and Rice St. is having their spring sale today through Sunday. They only sell gear (helmets, jackets, etc.) so it's a good place to look to get ideas also.

I was lucky that I found a helmet at Scooterville that has been really comfortable for me. It is a flip up that is DOT approved, but not Snell.

I guess the logic is that they don't have proper Snell testing for flip ups. Some would pass Snell as an open face, but fail as a full face, as I understand it, so they just don't approve any of them. Please feel free to correct me if I am wrong, but that is what I heard at one of the cycle shops. Can't remember which one.

Last edited by Stumpy on Fri Mar 10, 2006 11:46 pm; edited 1 time in total

If you wanted to be *REALLY* safe you wouldn't take the risk of riding at all and stay in your car. A closed face helmet is certainly safer than one which is not, but again it all goes back to the level of risk you are willing to take with your well being for things like vanity and comfort IMHO.

OK, I've broken a helmet. But it's really hard to do. Basically, you have to be racing your brother while riding a 68 350 Honda and then go through a mailbox into the ditch. The honda was in two large parts when I was done also. Lucky I landed in some mud.

It was a bell fiberglass? open face helmet with a plastic shield. The shield was pushed into my glasses and my glasses into my right eye socket. Missed the eyeball, 22 stitches around my eye. Also broke a bunch of toes and cut open my right knee.

My point is, helmets work. I'm guessing that closed helmets work better. I use a Scooterville flipup, but occasionally a half-shell on a warm day. I wear an armored jacket to commute but not always when it's hot. I wear boots when I ride a long way, but sometimes tennis shoes.

You balance risk, scooters, life, everything. Get a helmet that you'll actually wear all the time, that's the best kind.

Good point Brad - the best helmet is the one that you'll wear every time you ride. A really safe, high-quality full-face helmet won't protect you sitting in its fancy bag in your garage. So if you know you'll wear a halfie and you won't wear a full, get a half.

Me, I got a flip-up and a shorty when I bought the stella. I hated the flip-up and so never wore it, but the shorty made me too nervous. So that's when I got the HJC AC-3 - it's a 3/4, which means it provides all the protection of a full except the chin. And I always wore it. For winter I wanted to get an AC-11 because the HJCs fit me the best, but budget reasons pushed me to stick with the flip-up and I've been happy with it for winter use. But the point is, get what you'll wear! And you might not find the right combo on the first or even second try.

Here's a bit of the skinny on Snell, DOT and helmets in general. Some of it comes from research. Some is annecdotal. The most accurate comes from experience.
DOT compliance is completely voluntary and scarcely monitored. Any helmet manufacturer can make the claim that their helmet(s) have been tested and meet or exceed DOT standards. They may apply the DOT sticker and that's usually the end of the story. From what I've been able to decifer, DOT will randomly purchase and test helmets from a wide variety of manufacturers. It seems like they report the results on 20 - 25 models per year. Really a drop in the (no pun) bucket, given the number of manufacturers and models available. Most pass. Some don't. It doesn't appear that they punish the ones that don't pass muster. You'll see some big names as well as off brands in the failure list.
I have heard, and it appears to be the case, that a good number of helmets(usually on the lower price margins) come from one of a small handful of factories. [ i.e. many helmet brands. Few actual manufacturers.] All Snell rated helmets have been tested. Manufacturers submit certain helmet models to Snell Memorial Foundation for certification.
To get certified will come out of the manufacturers pocket. Often you will see the most expensive models from a given helmet company only carrying a DOT rating. A PHD in physics would help in reading about the various levels of Snell testing.
I've also heard the claim that the difference between manufacurer A's helmet @ $650.00, and manufacturer B's helmet @ $250.00, is $ 400.00.
The one constant is that proper fit is vital in chosing a helmet.
Helmets have been greatest variable of any product sold at Scooterville. We have tried a variety of manufacturers over the five years of sales. We now sell zero of the brands we sold in our first year. We have added two new lines (Fulmer & Zox) for this year. As a small business, we have to let the market direct our inventory to a certain extent.
The reality is, in a helmet optional state, that many customers come in not needing a helmet. (After all, it's only a scooter...). So our first responsibility is to put something, anything, between that haircut and the pavement.
From a business standpoint, carrying a full inventory of models, colors, and sizes can turn into a huge capital outlay. We follow the market and end up with a wider selection of 1/2 helmets(still way better than nothing) and a limited selection of affordable modular and full face models.
SPAM ALERT: I think we're still the only shop in town that can put you into a full face snell rated helmet for $ 110.00.
We can special order a variety of premium helmets.
Okay. I've way overspent my 2 cents. There are probably many on this board who can correct, refute, or expound on my version.

Bob, that sounds exactly what I've heard from others. And I don't think anybody can fault the 'ville for their limited selection considering the size of your operation compared to the big players.

When you say you can get more premium helmets, how general is that statement? Can you get just about anything? And if so, how close are you to the other shops' prices? PM me if you don't want to seem to be advertising on the board...